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How creations welded from the scrapheap have become a folk art rage "Muffler men are the cigar-store Indians of the late 20th century, trade figures made to stand in front of shops to advertise what is sold inside. Both are considered forms of folk art, but the skinny metal figures with shimmering muffler heads and torsos and pipe-thin legs found outside auto repair shops are wittier, more imaginative and flamboyantly painted. . . ." -Rita Reif, The New York Times Art can appear in the most unexpected places. Muffler men, for example, have become one of the most striking and remarkable of recent folk art creations. From Walla Walla to Daytona quirky mannikins constructed from discarded automobile mufflers are popping up across America. Cobbled together as business signposts, these comical sculptures are sprouting outside automotive repair shops everywhere. Car debris harmonizes with human anatomy as rusty cast-offs assume a new identity as savvy objets d'art. Signage turns into art as mechanics fashion cowboys, dogs, robots, space aliens, and a host of other creatures from metal scraps of the profession and with the aid of their workaday tools and acetylene. If for only a passing moment, the muffler men enliven the roadside and help to break up the monotony of daily commutes. More than mere advertisements, they interact with their communities by greeting the passerby. The significance of muffler sculptures turns profound when they become local celebrities and are hailed as community landmarks. But what do they mean? For the creative mechanic who made them they are exclamatory signposts and store mascots. For the academic folklorists who analyze them they are symbolic icons with cultural meanings that proclaim individual identity and group membership. For the collectors who treasure them they are exemplars of "outsider art." For most nonspecialists who wave as they speed past they are funky delights. This colorful book documents the widespread appeal of muffler men as a form of occupational art that enriches the workplace, the local environment, and now the art gallery. Timothy Corrigan Correll is a folklorist whose research focuses on material behavior and folk belief. Patrick Arthur Polk serves as the museum scientist and archivist for the UCLA Folklore and Mythology Archives.
As a child growing up in Malaysia, Shing Yin Khor had two very different ideas of what “America” meant. The first looked a lot like Hollywood, full of beautiful people and sunlight and freeways. The second looked more like The Grapes of Wrath - a nightmare landscape filled with impoverished people, broken-down cars, barren landscapes, and broken dreams. Those contrasting ideas have stuck with Shing ever since, even now that she lives and works in LA. The American Dream? A Journey on Route 66 is Shing’s attempt to find what she can of both of these Americas on a solo journey (small adventure-dog included) across the entire expanse of that iconic road, beginning in Santa Monica and ending up Chicago. And what begins as a road trip ends up as something more like a pilgrimage in search of an American landscape that seems forever shifting, forever out of place.
"Crafted from sheet metal and scraps into likenesses that include clowns, knights, cowboys, and L. Frank Baum's Tin Woodman of Oz, tin men have both utilitarian and aesthetic purposes. Some serve as sheet-metal shops' trade signs or prove an apprentice's competence. Others are coveted in boutiques, antique stores, and folk art museums."--BOOK JACKET.
Chuy works hard at the muffler shop to earn enough money to join his father in America, where together they create an army of "muffler men," statues made from old muffler parts, that they scatter around the city.
People will tell you that no one chooses to be homeless, but that isn't exactly true. After three years of full-time RVing in a fifth wheel camper, and a Class A motorhome, my husband and I made the decision to downsize to a Jeep Wrangler YJ. For six months we traveled with our belonging in the back of our Jeep, and we lived the minimalist lifestyle. This book is about our conscious decision to see if less was really more, and the lessons we learned as we embarked on this unconventional lifestyle. For anyone who is considering a mobile lifestyle, this book is a must-read.
As a child growing up in Malaysia, Shing Yin Khor had two very different ideas of what "America" meant. The first looked a lot like Hollywood, full of beautiful people, sunlight, and freeways. The second looked more like The Grapes of Wrath—a nightmare landscape filled with impoverished people, broken-down cars, barren landscapes, and broken dreams. Follow along on Shing's solo journey (small adventure-dog included) along the iconic Route 66, beginning in Santa Monica and ending up Chicago. What begins as a road trip ends up as something more like a pilgrimage in search of an American landscape that seems forever shifting and forever out of place. “Just like Shing in real life, The American Dream? is quirky, honest, captivating, and filled with recollections of weird roadside statues.”—Carol L. Tilley, comics historian and information science professor “Shing Yin Khor’s debut graphic memoir The American Dream? is the critical antidote to the whitewashed narratives of the great American road trip.” —Kristina Wong, performance artist and activist “A lovely, deceptively simple road trip memoir that revels in quirky discovery and quiet adventure while grappling with the anger and longing of one immigrant’s experience.” —Greg Pak, comic book writer "Khor takes that 'feeling of desperately searching for something better, for a new start,' and adapts it to their own 'pilgrimage' as immigrant and artist traveling historic Route 66 . . . in whimsical full-color detail."—starred, Booklist "This is a book that will make you want to pack a bag, jump in your car and travel across America."—Geek Mom A Forbes Best Graphic Novel of 2019